1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a joint member for a joint groove required to secure water-tightness between adjacent wall surface facing members in a building, and an installation method for the same.
2. Discussion of the Background
Hitherto, as a means for sealing a joint groove between adjacent wall surface facing members A of a siding or the like in a building, a hat-shaped joiner 50 shown in FIG. 11 is fixed to a bed member 51 such as a furring strip, and a sealant 52 is charged in a joint groove formed by abutting the wall surface facing members A against both side surfaces 50a of a protuberance of the joiner 50 so as to enhance the water-tightness of the joint groove.
The conventional means for sealing a joint groove, however, requires that masking be provided before installation to prevent a sealant from adhering to the wall surface facing members A prior to charging the sealant 52. The installation is not only cumbersome but also requires skill because the surface of the sealant 52 must be made as flat as possible in order not to ruin an appearance thereof. Furthermore, spots are produced in some cases when charging the sealant, so that sealing effect cannot always be enhanced.
A technological object of the present invention is to provide a joint member that can be easily installed, without adversely affecting an appearance, in a joint groove required to secure water-tightness between adjoining wall surface facing members of a building, and an installation method for the same.
Another technological object of the present invention is to provide a joint member and an installation method for the same that permit easy, reliable sealing in setting a predetermined joint groove between wall surface facings by using a joiner, by providing the joiner itself with a structure for enabling a joint groove to be easily sealed so as to obviate the need for masking or manual sealant charging.
To these ends, a first joint member in accordance with the present invention is comprised of: a joint base member consecutively and integrally installed on a surface of a synthetic resin joiner provided by being positioned between wall surface facing members on a bed surface of a building facing; wherein the joint base member has right and left side plates, at least two soft sealing tongue flaps protuberantly provided on outer side surfaces of the side plates, distal ends thereof being in contact with end surfaces of the wall surface facing members that constitute inner walls of a joint groove, and many apertures drilled between the sealing tongue flaps in the two side plates; a sealant of a sufficient amount to be pressed out and charged into a space to seal the space surrounded by the pair of sealing tongue flaps and the inner side walls of the joint groove is charged between the side plates of the joint base member; and a sealing member for restraining outflow of the sealant is attached to a mouth portion between the two side plates of the joint base member; and a core member to be pushed into a gap between the side plates of the joint base member is formed by a core portion that pushes into the gap between the side plates while pressing the covering member thereby to press the sealant, which has been charged therein, out through the apertures of the side plates, and a jaw plate of a head portion that covers a joint groove mouth portion, the core portion and the jaw plate being consecutively installed such that they are formed to have a substantially T-shaped section, and the core portion having a length that does not cause itself to reach a bottom part of a sealant charge area between the sides plates when it is pushed in.
Further, a second joint member in accordance with the present invention is comprised of: a joint base member consecutively and integrally installed on a surface of a synthetic resin joiner provided by being positioned between wall surface facing members on a bed surface of a building facing; wherein the joint base member has right and left side plates, at least two soft sealing tongue flaps protuberantly provided on outer side surfaces of the side plates, distal ends thereof being in contact with end surfaces of the wall surface facing members that constitute inner walls of a joint groove, and many apertures drilled between the sealing tongue flaps in the two side plates; a sealant of a sufficient amount to be pressed out and charged into a space to seal the space surrounded by the pair of sealing tongue flaps and the inner side walls of the joint groove is charged between the side plates of the joint base member; and a covering member for restraining outflow of the sealant and for restraining a mouth portion between the two side plates from narrowing is fitted into the mouth portion between the two side plates of the joint base member; and a core member to be pushed into a gap between the side plates of the joint base member is formed by a core portion that presses out the sealant, which has been charged by being pushed into the space between the side plates, out through the apertures of the side plates by pressing the covering member to push it into the gap between the side plates, and a jaw plate of a head portion that covers a joint groove mouth portion, the core portion and the jaw plate being consecutively installed so that they are formed to have a substantially T-shaped section, and the core portion having a length that does not cause a distal end of the covering member to reach a bottom part of a sealant charge area between the sides plates when the core portion is pushed in.
In the joint member, it is appropriate to form, between sealing tongue flaps on the joiner side in the side plates of the joint base member and the joiner, a space into which the remainder of the sealant, which is pressed into the space surrounded by the pair of sealing tongue flaps and the inner walls of the joint groove when the core member is pushed into a gap between the side plates, flows. Furthermore, it is preferable to form a protuberance for setting a minimum width of the joint groove on the proximal ends of at least one set of sealing tongue flaps at opposing positions of the two side plates, the protuberance being located on outer side surfaces of the two side plates in the joint base member.
Furthermore, an installation method in accordance with the present invention employing the aforesaid joint member is comprised of: a step for providing a joiner by positioning a joint base member between wall surface facing members on a bed surface of a building facing; and a step for pushing a core portion of a core member into a gap between side plates of the joint base member filled with a sealant, or pushing in the core portion of the core member while pushing a covering member, which has been fitted into a mouth portion between the two side plates of the joint base member, to push the sealant out through apertures in the side plates into a space surrounded by a pair of sealing tongue flaps protuberantly provided on the outer side surfaces of the side plates and inner walls of a joint groove, and covering a mouth portion of the joint groove by a jaw plate of a core member head portion at the same time.
Furthermore, a third joint member in accordance with the present invention is comprised of: a sealing structural member integrally and consecutively installed on a surface of a synthetic resin joiner provided and positioned between wall surface facing members on a bed surface of a building facing; wherein the sealing structural member has flexible right and left side plates and soft sealing flaps protuberantly provided on outer side surfaces of the side plates; a core member pushed into a gap between the side plates of the sealing structural member is formed by a core portion that is pushed into a gap between the side plates to push and spread the two side plates to press the sealing flaps on outer side surfaces of the side plates into contact with inner walls of a joint groove, and a jaw plate of a head portion for sealing a mouth portion of the joint groove, the core portion and the jaw plate being consecutively installed to have a substantially T-shaped section; and engaging portions, which engage with each other when a core member is pushed into the sealing structural member so as to hold the core member between the two side plates in the sealing structural member so that it does not slip off, are provided inside the two side plates in the sealing structural member and on the core portion of the core member.
The sealing flaps protuberantly provided on the outer side surfaces of the two side plates in the sealing structural member of the third joint member may be formed by a plurality of soft sealing tongue flaps made integral with the side plates.
Furthermore, the engagement between the side plates and the core portion in the core member may be accomplished by engaging a proximal end portion or a distal end portion of the core portion with an engaging portion of an associated side plate.
The following will explain more specifically about the aforesaid joint member and its installation method. To set the joint member in accordance with the present invention in a joint groove between adjoining wall surface facing members in a building, first, a joiner is provided with the joint base member positioned between the wall surface facing members on a bed surface of a building facing. At this time, the sealing tongue flaps are in elastic and close contact with the end surfaces of the wall surface facing members so as not to produce a clearance between the wall surface facing members and the joint base member. Especially when the proximal end portions of at least one set of the sealing tongue flaps are provided with protuberances in the positions where the two side plates of the joint base member oppose each other, the joint groove of the wall surface facing members can be set to a minimum width by the protuberances.
As described above, when providing the joiner with the joint base member positioned between the wall surface facing members, the sealing tongue flaps protuberantly provided on the outer side surfaces of the two side plates in the joint base member are pressed against the inner walls of the joint groove. There is a danger in that the gap between the side plates reduces due to a reaction force received from the inner walls of the joint groove, causing the sealant to flow out through the mouth between the two side plates. This problem can be solved by increasing the strength of the bottom plate portions of the two side plates in the joiner. Narrowing of the mouth of the two side plates can be restrained by fitting a covering member into the mouth between both side plates in the joint base member.
Thereafter, the core portion of the core member is pushed into a gap between the two side plates of the joint base member to push the sealant out of the apertures drilled in the side plates of the joint base member. The sealant is charged in the space surrounded by the pair of sealing tongue flaps and the inner walls of the joint groove, and the remaining sealant pushes and spreads the sealing tongue flap on the joiner side of the side plate in the joint base member to flow into the space between the joiner and the sealing tongue flap. This arrangement prevents the sealant from spreading out of the joint member due to variations in the width of the joint groove.
To be more specific, the upper surfaces of the sealing tongue flaps come in close contact with the inner walls of the joint groove so that the sealing tongue flaps bend toward the joiner when the end surfaces of the wall surface facing members are pressed into contact. Hence, even if the sealant which has been pushed out fails to be accommodated between the pairs of sealing tongue flaps, the sealant will flow out into the space on the side of the joiner through the gap between the sealing tongue flaps on the side of the joiner and the inner walls of the joint groove, so that it will not flow out of the wall surface facing members through a gap between the sealing tongue flaps on the mouth of the two side plates in the joint base member that is difficult to push and spread by curving and the inner walls of the joint groove. This arrangement enables the sealant to be effectively used for sealing the joint grooves and also permits variations in the width of joint grooves to be successfully handled.
Thus, the first and second joint members described above make it possible to easily install a joint member in a joint groove required to secure water-tightness between adjoining wall surface facing members of a building without adversely affecting an appearance thereof.
Moreover, since the joiner itself is provided with the structure for easily sealing a joint groove, the need for masking or manual charging of a sealant can be obviated, permitting easy, reliable sealing.
In addition, an area for accommodating an extra sealant to cope with variations in the width of a joint groove is secured, preventing the sealant from extending out of the joint member when the core member is pushed in. This arrangement enables effective use of the sealant for sealing the joint groove thereby to provide effective sealing between the joint groove and the inner walls.
Thus, according to the present invention, a joint member can be easily installed, without sacrificing an appearance, in a joint groove required to secure water-tightness between adjoining wall surface facing members of a building. Moreover, since the joiner itself is provided with the structure for easily sealing a joint groove, the need for masking or manual charging of a sealant can be obviated, permitting easy, reliable sealing.
In addition, an area for accommodating an extra sealant to cope with variations in joint grooves is secured, preventing the sealant from extending out of the joint member when the core member is pushed in. This arrangement enables effective use of the sealant for sealing the joint groove thereby to provide effective sealing between the inner walls of the joint groove.
To install the third joint member described above, first, the sealing structural member is positioned between the wall surface facing members, and a joiner is provided in place. Under this condition, the wall surface facing members are fixed, then the core portion of the core member is pushed into a gap between the two side plates of the sealing structural member. This causes the jaw plate of the core member head portion to primarily seal a mouth portion of the joint groove, and at the same time, the two side plates of the sealing structural member are pushed and spread, causing the sealing flaps on the outer side surfaces of the side plates to be pressed into contact with the inner walls of the joint groove to perform secondary sealing. Furthermore, the engaging portions provided in the two side plates in the sealing structural member and the core portion in the core member engage with each other to hold the core member between the two side plates in the sealing structural member so that it does not slip off. This arrangement makes it possible to positively maintain water-tightness and also to accommodate variations in the width of joint grooves.
Thus, a joint member can be provided that can be easily installed in a dry manner, without sacrificing an appearance, in a joint groove required to secure water-tightness between adjacent wall surface facing members of a building.
In addition, the joiner itself is provided with the structure for easily sealing a joint groove and is adapted to obviate the need for a wet type sealant. Hence, there is no need for masking or manual charging of a sealant, thus permitting reliable sealing to be achieved easily at low cost.